Which Compressor

[jondrane]

Hi i have £400 to spend on a compressor and was after some advice on which one to get. I will be using it on airtools(drill,grinder,nibbler), for paint spraying and possibly to supply a pressure blast pot. I understand that i will need something producing 14cfm or more.

Thanks in advance for the replies
jon

 

[rtbcomp]

Welcome to the forum.

14cfm min for sandblasting. Get one with cast iron cylinders. If you have choice between tank size and cfm go for cfm. I've had one of these for a few years and use it almost daily for gritblasting

http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/se16c150-air-compressor/path/professionalindustrial-air-compressors-elect

Should fall within your budget if you buy it on a vat-free day.

 

[stormin]

Make sure you get a belt drive rather than direct drive compressor.
Direct drive tend to be cheaper, but they're a lot noisier, won't last as long due to higher running speed and more expensive to repair.
As RTB says go for CFM above reciever size. You can always add in extra air tanks later if you feel it's necessary.
I'd budget for a decent filter regulator unit as well. The ones supplied on compressors aren't very good. If you want to do sandblasting you need dry air.

 

[jondrane]

hey guy thanks for the replies, I have just have a mm vat free day invite so have decided to go for the clarke SE16C100, and a decent moisture filter.
Does this sound good for my applications?
thanks
jon

 

[rtbcomp]

hey guy thanks for the replies, I have just have a mm vat free day invite so have decided to go for the clarke SE16C100, and a decent moisture filter.
Does this sound good for my applications?
thanks
jon

You should be OK with that, I've been pleased with mine and it works hard for its living. Only real problem is an oil leak.

There were teething troubles, the drain cock inner thread was Loctited to it's housing instead of the housing being Loctited into the tank! A bit of gunge found its way into the dump valve in the pressure switch which meant the delivery pipe didn't de-pressurise when the motor stopped.

 

[Caledonian]

Hi all, mind if I hi-jack a bit?
What benefits are to be got by going to the 200 model? Are they worth the extra 70 quid?
Thanks

Jack

 

[rtbcomp]

Hi all, mind if I hi-jack a bit?
What benefits are to be got by going to the 200 model? Are they worth the extra 70 quid?
Thanks

Jack

Not 100% sure which model you mean, could you link to the MM's site or give us the full model number?

 

[eil]

I take it you mean the SC16C200 which means you've got 50 ltr more capacity in the receiver, spoke to a clark guy today and found the difference between the SC16C and the SE15C is the 16 is a Chinese comp and motor and the SC15C is Italian pump and motor, depends if you think 50 lts of volume is worth 70 quid more. The advantage of a larger tank is you can carry on longer with a high air usage tool, and the better chance of your air cooling and thus the water separating from the air in the tank.

 

[rtbcomp]

Strange, I'm sure my SC16C says it was made in Italy! Mind you it's quite old so probably built before the Chinese took over world production of everything.

A 45 Kg propane cylinder holds about 90 litres, I bet you wouldn't pay £70.00 for one!

 

[eil]

Thats what he told me as I was enquiring about them as I have a vat free card to use this month and my brother would fancy one. but as you say yours gets quite a bit of stick so they cant be that bad. agree with the tank though.

 

[Caledonian]

Thanks guys, it was the SC16C200 I was looking at. I guess I'll go for the 150 and stick the 70 quid into the Portamig fund

 

[rtbcomp]

Thanks guys, it was the SC16C200 I was looking at. I guess I'll go for the 150 and stick the 70 quid into the Portamig fund

 

[jondrane]

hi just had my MM vat free day and got the se16c100, gone to use it today and it just blows the fuse. i have it connected to a socket with a std three pin plug and 13amp fuse, as the manual doesn`t say anything diffrent.
any ideas?

thanks
jon

 

[rtbcomp]

That's a 3 horsepower 14cfm machine, it needs a beefier supply. My manual suggests a 30 amp fuse, this means you need to run it from a dedicated outlet from your consumer unit.

Percieved wisdom is that 2 hp is the maximum you can connect to a 13A socket.